Today is Veterans Day - a day to recognize and honor the men and women who have served honorably in wartime and peacetime in the United States Armed Forces. Veterans Day is different from Memorial Day when America remembers and honors all military personnel who died in service to our country.
Banks and the Post Office are closed today; and traditionally in small towns and cities across the country, there are parades. But this year, many of the parades and Veterans Day activities have been canceled due to the coronavirus pandemic.
Veterans Day began as Armistice Day on November 11 as a day to honor all members of the United States Armed Forces and mark the end of World War I, which occurred on the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month in 1918. In 1954, Congress passed a bill that was signed by President Dwight Eisenhower changing the name to Veterans Day to honor all veterans. In 2016, President Obama signed a proclamation calling for a national 2 minute moment of silence at 2:11 pm (ET).
To honor all veterans on my talk show on WWL-AM-FM-Radio.com, we have 2 minutes of silence. Two minutes of silence on the radio is different from 2 minutes of silence on television or visual social media because there is just silence and no visual reminder as to why the silence is being observed. But at WWL, we felt it was important enough to observe the national 2 minutes of silence at the time set by the proclamation, which is 1:11 pm (CT).
We honor all of the veterans who served in all branches of our military at a time when America is divided and struggling over the results of a heated presidential election. Challenges to the results of the election continue with bitter feelings on both sides.
As we celebrate this Veterans Day, shouldn’t we remember that our veterans fought for our freedom, which includes freedom of speech and the privilege of taking sides in a political debate?
Democrat Joe Biden was declared president-elect late Saturday morning, and immediately President Trump and some of his staff and advisors said the election was stolen. Currently, America is embroiled in a battle of the ballots. It would be easy to focus only on the negative aspects of this passionate political debate; but perhaps on this Veterans Day 2020, we should focus on the idea that in America these disputes are allowed.
Regardless of which side you are on - let’s recognize that the veterans who have served our nation served to protect our freedom - even the freedom to disagree about the results of a presidential election.
A winner will be certified; and even with discontent on the side of the loser, this will play out in a great country that honors and protects political disagreements.
